What's so bad about this episode that it's often rated one of the worst? It has massive problems, although it has (a few) good points too.

The Avenged?: A minimum of misdirection; Cathy's friend is "only" guilty of manslaughter. That's okay, then?

Diabolical Masterminds?: There's a duo of not-so-super spies from Leipzig: de Groot and his muscle-bound henchman Blomberg. They're nicely played, but don't advance the soapy plot much. James Bree's weak-minded Miller sells out after some unconvincing jealousy over giggly airhead Mara. Mara manages to give quite an excruciating performance, especially when she is caught by Steed burgling de Groot's hotel suite.

The Avengers?: Steed and Cathy's scenes are light and fun, but with no real wit or bite. Steed is recognisably the urbane agent of later seasons. So, Cathy is also an expert (and author) on ceramics, as well as philately and anthropology. A pity we don't see her coach Steed for his undercover role.

Umbrella, Charm and a Bowler Hat?: There are two tiers of acting in this. Allan Marling is a believable and sympathetic figure. Sadly, he is the only person who really has any motivation or involvement, with everyone else either lurking on the fringes awaiting a few scraps of storyline (Paul Eddington) or becoming increasingly hysterical and using what can politely be called "theatre acting" (i.e. exaggerated, and not the minimalist speech and movement needed for close-up work) or less politely known as ham (James Bree). There are some eye-watering "northern English" accent attempts.

Bizarre?: Often the "unbreakable ceramic" is criticised as too mundane a plot hook. Actually, it is explained twice that this material is vital for weapons development (it's frictionless, incredibly hard and perfect for missile nosecones; it's also worth £50,000 and attempted murder). Its case is not helped, though, when One-Ten refers to it proudly as unbreakable "plastic"!

The sets of the pottery workshop are tremendous. Sadly, some of the performances and production gaffes are just unforgivable, even to a generous viewer. John Bryce once said, "A year of hard work goes into making 26 episodes, and if at any time we find it boring, that boredom would quickly show through on the screen." How very true in this case!

On Target? (Score): One bowler out of four, for those who are trying hard to make it work. 2/10._________________Last watched: The Man in the Mirror.